The Formidable Whippersnapper

If we really want to remember who we are, we should probably think about our ten year old selves, when we were blissfully unconcerned with the disapproval, and better yet, the approval of others; a time before the world convinced us to conform and obey. At age ten, I haunted the baseball field where my older brother played on the Babe Ruth league. This was a time when girls were not allowed to play Little League even if they were able to slam the ball out of the park and run like a rabbit with hell on its heels.
I was frequently recruited to man (in those days pronouns were not sources of contention) the concession stand or the score box.  I was instructed to watch for the umpire’s calls and then dutifully light up the strikes and balls on the board. I quickly realized that I did not need to wait for the ump’s calls since they always validated my judgment. Gradually, the ump became aware of the increasingly uproarious laughter emanating from the bleachers. With great consternation, he looked around until he finally noticed that the source of the merriment was a scrawny miscreant in the box above him. The ump turned around and  vehemently chastised me, “Stop anticipating my calls!!!  I’m in charge here!”  To which I replied, “ I have a better view than you and I haven’t been wrong yet!”  Now is a good time to point out that some of my favorite words have always been impertinent, insolent and impudent. Enough said.
“Leave the kid alone, Ump!” was the general outcry from the bleachers.
I know that a lot of parents are throwing up their hands in horror after reading this, but society  homogenizes us to allow the powerful to subdue the rest by convincing us to avoid disapproval and seek acceptance. Loosely quoted, Epictetus said, “Never depend on the admiration of others.”, because it will place you in their power to manipulate. Many parents teach their children to immediately obey adults without question but then complain when their children are victimized as a result of refraining from challenging authority.
Whenever I have the slightest inclination to doubt my abilities I think to myself, “Remember the ump.”  I’m pretty sure the poor guy remembers me.